Karin’s Disneyland Paris First Timer Tips - 2024

[DisneySwede]

As a frequent DLP visitor this is spot on, great job!

 

[allashore]

this is fantastic, you made my day by simplifying a lot of info
does DLP offer discount or specials in the Fall, end of Oct? for hotel & park combo?

 

[Karin1984]

this is fantastic, you made my day by simplifying a lot of info
does DLP offer discount or specials in the Fall, end of Oct? for hotel & park combo?

Last week of October unfortunately not. That's a school holiday week in many European holidays, including France.
So chances of discounts are basically none.

Early October and November, when schools are still in session, are better days to get cheaper hotels and/or tickets. Especially when you can go during the week.

 

[Karin1984]

Some new tips, fresh from DLP, will put them in the first posts later.

- If you pay for guaranteed access for the fireworks, you can enter 1 hour before the drone show starts. I would advise to be there. Yes, you have guaranteed access, but if you arrive just before showtime, there will still be 10 rows of people in front of you.

- If you have access for the disability section for the fireworks, and you are sensitive to sound: bring ear protection. This spot is directly opposite a speaker.

- Meet Mickey with only a 15 minute wait?!?!?!
The meet & greet at Phantom Manor is not advertised (otherwise Mickey would be meeting in two places at once)., he starts meeting at 10, but not at of people know this. I was the first on a very busy Saturday at 9.45. Mickey was a few minutes late, but basically. My wait was 15 minutes.

 

[SueInBoston]

Karin,
Thank you for taking the time to do this. I just found out I get to tag along my boyfriend's business trip at the end of the month. I will have 3 days on my own so DLP is first on my list. I came here to look for information and your thread basically has everything I need!.. Thank you!!

 

[Karin1984]

Karin,
Thank you for taking the time to do this. I just found out I get to tag along my boyfriend's business trip at the end of the month. I will have 3 days on my own so DLP is first on my list. I came here to look for information and your thread basically has everything I need!.. Thank you!!

You're welcome! If you have any questions, let me/us know!

 

[White Rose]

We are renting a scooter and it will be delivered to the hotel.

We also paid for the guaranteed access for fireworks, I am assuming it here are no seats at the garanteed spot.

Will they allow me to stay with the scooter?

 

[Karin1984]

We are renting a scooter and it will be delivered to the hotel.

We also paid for the guaranteed access for fireworks, I am assuming it here are no seats at the garanteed spot.

Will they allow me to stay with the scooter?

You are correct, there are no seats. It is basically the street right in front of the castle.

I was there last week and saw several scooters and wheelchairs in the guaranteed viewing area.

Two tips:
- Come early, you can enter 1 hour before the drone show. If you arrive late, there might be 10 rows of people in front of you (if possible, I would personally try to get a front row seat to see the projections on the castle in full)
- It is dark, and there are CMs with flashlights, however, when you enter: stay to the left of the path. On the right there is a little curb.

This is the video I made a few days ago. The crowd you see are all people who bought guaranteed access. It might look a little worse as a large section at the front was sectioned off as well for VIP tours.

https://www.tiktok.com/video/7409021930851831073

 

[Karin1984]

A long time ago, we had a discussion on here about mattress sizes. On my last visit I did a split stay between Newport Bay Club and Sequoia Lodge, and I did one room with 1 large double bed and the other with 2 double beds.

The large double bed: 200 cm x 180 cm (78x70")
A double bed: 195 cm x 135 cm (76x53")

Now you know!

 

[steve_rob]

The large double bed: 200 cm x 180 cm (78x70")
A double bed: 195 cm x 135 cm (76x53")

So for comparison, the large double is almost the same length (but not quite) as a US King size bed, but about 6 inches narrower on width. It's about 10 inches wider than a US Queen bed.

The standard double is shorter than a US Queen by about 3 inches, but the same length as a US Full or Double bed. In terms of width it's 5 inches narrower than a Queen, and fractionally wider than a Full or Double, maybe by an inch or two.

As for UK sizes, the standard double is almost the same in both countries (1-2 cm between them in both dimensions), while the large double is akin to the UK Super King (once again, very slight difference but hardly anything in it).

 

[Karin1984]

Just found out that there is another site selling discounted tickets: https://goticketless.co.uk/
Never used them myself, but depending on the date, it can save you 10GBP per person.

 

[steve_rob]

What about A/C...
We don't really do air conditioning in Europe. Not in the same way as they do in the US. When it's warm, we open a window.
If there is A/C in your room, you won't be able to set it to very very cold. When you are visiting in the summer months and you really want A/C in your room... you have better chances of this staying at a Marriott or a Hilton etc. in the city center than in the Disneyland Hotels.

So, a small update to this. Having just got back from a few days on my first trip back to the Disneyland Hotel following its refurbishment, I can say that their rooms now DO have something more akin to a US version of A/C. Now I didn't really get to test it properly as it was not particularly warm last week and therefore it wasn't needed, but certainly based on the control panel on the wall and my experience of similar systems, it does seem to be something they have retroactively fitted during the refurb to all rooms. Is that alone worth the extra cost of the DLH? Probably not, but it is something worth noting.

Also worth mentioning is that they have replaced the old mini-bar with a drinks cooler (although they still called it a mini-bar on the documentation). Anyone familiar with the changes made to rooms at WDW over the past few years will know of these - they aren't set to be as cold as an actual fridge, but should still be able to keep drinks reasonably cool - probably ranges around 6 - 9 degrees Celsius in temperature. There were three bottles of water (two still, one sparkling) and one bottle of fruit juice in there when we arrived with a note to say that all of them were complimentary, but they would not be replenished. There was room to store at least six more bottles of soft drink in there I'd say.

 

[zavandor]

There were three bottles of water (two still, one sparkling) and one bottle of fruit juice in there when we arrived with a note to say that all of them were complimentary, but they would not be replenished. There was room to store at least six more bottles of soft drink in there I'd say.

Understandable, poor Disney, the price of a room at the Disneyland hotel cannot cover an expense of a couple of € to replenish some water.

 

[Tooth Fairy]

If we book a package with hotel and tickets,,,what is the start and end time of the tickets...can we enter the day we arrive and enter the day of checkout?

 

[Bad Pink Tink 2.0]

If we book a package with hotel and tickets,,,what is the start and end time of the tickets...can we enter the day we arrive and enter the day of checkout?

No
A hotel and ticket package booked through Disneyland Paris website or through a travel agent has park hopper tickets for arrival day, departure day and all days in between.

The tickets are valid from park opening to park closing.

Some people will book a room only at an off site hotel or at an airport hotel or arrive early in the morning and check in to the onsite hotel to get the park tickets. All onsite hotels have a luggage store so you can arrive as early as you like and get the park tickets and leave your luggage.

The same on departure day. Your tickets are valid until park closing, so again some people will check out, leave their bags in the luggage store and go to the parks.

 

[zavandor]

No
A hotel and ticket package booked through Disneyland Paris website or through a travel agent has park hopper tickets for arrival day, departure day and all days in between.

The tickets are valid from park opening to park closing.

Some people will book a room only at an off site hotel or at an airport hotel or arrive early in the morning and check in to the onsite hotel to get the park tickets. All onsite hotels have a luggage store so you can arrive as early as you like and get the park tickets and leave your luggage.

The same on departure day. Your tickets are valid until park closing, so again some people will check out, leave their bags in the luggage store and go to the parks.

You answered No, but then explain, correctly, that the answer is Yes , they can enter the parks on checkin and checkout days.

 

[DL1WDW2]

My relatives just returned a day asked them o visit the Fort Wilderness Cabins but they never could find anything . Bu they tried.
I just read all of your amazing advice So nice of you …Thank you …
So now I am wondering if it is called Sequoia Lodge or Cheyenne Hotel or Davy Crockett Ranch . I am thinking Davy Crockett Ranch ! I really hoped for a post card from the resort.
They did send me a post card with Mickey& Minnie in front of Castle with French postage !
So Im a Happy Camper anyway

 

[helenb]

This is a great thread! Thank you for putting all of your tips in one place!

I have a question about the premiere ultimate pass. Is it valid for both parks? All park tickets are parkhoppers, right? So if you get premiere ultimate, does that mean that you can do all of the eligible rides in BOTH parks in 1 day? (In case you can't tell, we are 'power Disney' people and are used to running all over the parks to squeeze in as many rides as we can.)

 

[Karin1984]

This is a great thread! Thank you for putting all of your tips in one place!

I have a question about the premiere ultimate pass. Is it valid for both parks? All park tickets are parkhoppers, right? So if you get premiere ultimate, does that mean that you can do all of the eligible rides in BOTH parks in 1 day? (In case you can't tell, we are 'power Disney' people and are used to running all over the parks to squeeze in as many rides as we can.)

Yes, you can. Unless specifically purchased as a single park, every package has hoppers.

 

[helenb]

Yes, you can. Unless specifically purchased as a single park, every package has hoppers.

Thank you!